Sparks
by Taywen
Summary: High school AU. Mukuro's a high school drop out. Hibari's the head prefect. Sparks fly. Eventual 6918. Written for 10 orders on livejournal.
1. An Older Brother's Prerogative

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: High school!AU (oh, the cliché). Mukuro + Chrome are siblings, Muku is 18 (a high school drop-out) and Chrome is 16 (a sophomore), as is Haru. This story will eventually be Mukuro x Hibari.

Written for prompt 4 (leave me alone) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

And please forgive the laaaame title. Sometimes I think of really good ones. Other times I come up with something like this, aha...

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><p><strong>An Older Brother's Prerogative<strong>

[ leave me alone. ]

Since he dropped out of high school two years ago to get a job and support his remaining family member (Chrome), Mukuro usually gets home from his shift to find Chrome waiting for him, dinner on the table more often than not.

Sometimes she stays late at school, or spends the evening at a friend's house, but in those cases she either texts him or leaves him a note.

The eighteen year old frowns when he sees no note on the table, and doesn't hear a greeting from his sister. She's obviously home, her shoes are sitting by the front door, but other than that the modest two-bedroom apartment seems empty.

Chrome's door is closed, so she must be there...

"Leave me alone!" Chrome shouts when he knocks on the door.

Mukuro feels one of his eyebrow twitch in annoyance. In general, Chrome is a cute, sweet little sister. This is one of those times when she falls into the much more troubling category of 'annoying nuisance'. It's been happening more and more recently, especially since she entered high school and started hanging out with that irritating Miura girl a year ago.

However, he is inclined to humour her this once, since he can hear the tears in her voice and her poorly muffled sobs. Whoever hurt his younger sister is going to die a _slow _and_ painful_ death. "Chrome-chan," Mukuro says with more patience than he really feels, "Please let me in."

Sniffling, his sister complies and then goes back to curl up on her bed, this time with her head in Mukuro's lap. He pets her hair a little awkwardly, not for the first time cursing the parents who abandoned them years ago.

"What's wrong, Chrome-chan?" he asks, handing her a tissue. "Did you and Miura-chan get in a fight?" This is the only possibility he has been able to come up with.

"N-no," Chrome answers, then blows her nose rather loudly.

Mukuro waits for her to continue, but his sister simply continues to sniffle. _Irritating..._ he thinks.

"Did something happen at school?" he tries again.

Chrome nods mutely. Now they're getting somewhere.

"... Did it involve a boy?" Mukuro adds darkly, his eyes narrowing at the thought. It's hard to remember that his sweet baby sister is already sixteen, sometimes.

Again, he receives a silent nod in response.

"Who?" Mukuro demands furiously.

"H-he's a senior..."

Oh. Oh no that bastard didn't. Mukuro doesn't even know the kid's identity yet, but he does know that whoever he is, he doesn't have long left on this earth.

Chrome sits up and rubs a hand across her eyes. Her tears have abated, thankfully, though her eyes are still red-rimmed and her cheeks tear-streaked.

"Name?" Mukuro asks, shortly.

"Mukuro-nii, you can't hurt him," Chrome says sternly, the effect ruined when she sniffles loudly.

"I wouldn't dream of it," he lies, but Chrome knows him far better than that. He tries again, "I could always ask Miura..."

"Daemon Spade," Chrome mumbles, her fingers fiddling with the hem of her skirt. She hasn't even changed out of her school uniform. "B-but, it's not what you think, Mukuro-nii!" she adds quickly, when she sees the set of his jaw.

"Then tell me what happened. Or do I have to ask your annoying friend-"

"Just... um... Well, he asked me on a date last week..."

This is news to Mukuro. Last week Chrome only stayed out late once, and she told him it was to study with the Miura girl.

"...and I had a really good time, but today when I went to meet him for lunch like we arranged and he kept trying to, um," here she starts stammering, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment and distress.

Being an older brother, Mukuro's mind immediately goes to the worst places possible. He revises his earlier assessment: Daemon Spade has at least several weeks left on this earth ahead of him; too bad for him, he'll be in _excruciating pain_.

"Did he... force you?" Mukuro makes himself ask, not because he doesn't want to know the answer, but asking Chrome questions like this is a little awkward.

"He tried but- I slapped him and ran away."

"Good," the bluenet says vindictively.

Chrome smiles weakly. "I told the Discipline Committee... The vice chairman said they'd deal with it, so you don't have to do anything, ok, Mukuro-nii?"

"That doesn't mean I _won't_," Mukuro mutters, eyes narrowed.

His sister sighs. "Mukuro-nii... I'll go make dinner. We can talk about this after."

He nods, though he has no intention of being swayed. A senior, picking on _his_ little sister? Unacceptable. The presumptuous bastard deserves to die.

Chrome leaves the room, and Mukuro notices that she left her phone behind. Smirking, he opens the contacts list and sure enough, Daemon Spade is near the top; Mukuro enters the information into his own cell phone, then carefully sets Chrome's back where it had been.

Pulling up Miura Haru's number, Mukuro quickly types, _Good evening, Miura. I hope you're well. Chrome-chan is feeling a bit unwell at the moment – I hope it's not too much to ask you to come keep her company? I'm afraid I'm not very good at 'girl things'. – M. R._

The reply comes less than a minute later: _Of course, Mukuro-san! Haru will be over in fifteen minutes. Chrome-chan didn't want to talk about what happened with Daemon-san earlier today and Haru didn't want to press..._

Mukuro frowns. A few seconds later, he gets another: _U-um, Haru means, unless you don't know about what happened with Daemon-san. Er, that is, nothing happened, Mukuro-san._

The bluenet rolls his eyes. What a stupid girl, he can't imagine what Chrome sees in Miura; but if she's happy, he won't complain. _I know what happened, Miura-chan, don't worry about it. Please come as soon as you are able. I would greatly appreciate it. – M. R._

As the Rokudo siblings are sitting down for their meal, the doorbell rings and Miura enters without further invitation. The look Chrome sends her brother plainly conveys that she's not fooled, but she greets her friend easily enough.

Mukuro eats his meal quickly, answering in as few words as possible whenever Miura or Chrome attempts to include him in the conversation.

"Well, I'd better be going," he remarks casually after clearing his dishes away. "I promised Ken and Chikusa that I'd meet up with them tonight."

"Bye, Mukuro-san!" Miura says enthusiastically, with a cheerful wave to match.

"I'll see you later, Chrome-chan, Miura." Mukuro pulls on his black coat and walks out. He almost makes it down the hall, to the stairs, before Chrome runs after him.

"Mukuro-nii... Please don't do anything, um, rash. Just leave it alone, ok? The Discipline Committee can take care of things," his sister says earnestly.

The bluenet raises an eyebrow. The Discipline Committee he remembers from high school was a corrupt, ineffective institution run by corrupt, ineffective idiots. The head prefect was a blond named Dino, if he recalls correctly. But perhaps in two years this has changed. Nevertheless. "I don't get many chances to take care of you anymore, Chrome-chan. Indulge a protective older brother for once, won't you?"

Chrome bites her lip. "Don't do anything permanent to him," she insists.

Mukuro leans down and kisses her cheek. "I would never," he drawls.

"Yes you would, Mukuro-nii."

His lips quirk upwards into a smirk. "Good night, Chrome-chan. Don't stay up too long – I'll probably get home rather late."

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><p>AN: Feedback of any sort is greatly appreciated. :D


	2. Illicit Extracurricular Activities

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: Takes place directly after _An Older Brother's Prerogative_. Daemon & Hibari are 18 as well. Also I have this sneaking suspicion that Hibari is OOC... Sigh.

Written for prompt 7 (go to hell) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

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><p><strong>Illicit Extracurricular Activities<strong>

[ go to hell. ]

Mukuro was born with a slight... birth defect. It's his eyes. The left is blue, and perfectly normal, but the other is a rather frightening shade of red. The bluenet has coloured contacts to cover the anomaly – not that he's ashamed of it, but it's a trial going through one's day-to-day life with people staring – and doesn't often think about it.

Except, well, when he _wants_ to turn heads.

Daemon Spade lives alone, from what Mukuro was able to gather in a quick internet search. Family lives out of town. Scholarship student; transferred to Namimori this year. Captain of the Namimori soccer team.

Mukuro waits on the edge of the field for the soccer practice to finish. The rest of the team disperses, leaving only Daemon Spade.

When the captain comes out of the changing room, Mukuro walks toward him but another person makes it there first. He's wearing the red armband of the Discipline Committee, though he looks like a total juvie.

_Well, that's new,_ Mukuro thinks, not feeling confident about this new facet of the Discipline Committee.

"Daemon-san, a sophomore lodged a complaint with the Committee – she said you tried to... force her in the boy's washroom," the prefect states, sounding a little uneasy.

Daemon stares at the boy, one eyebrow raised. "Is that so? I have no memory of such a thing. Are you sure she's not just an overenthusiastic fan looking for attention?"

Mukuro narrows his eyes at the unjust accusation, but doesn't intervene.

"There have been other complaints, as well," the prefect responds nervously. "If you don't curb your attentions, the head prefect will intervene."

"Nufufu, are you threatening me?"

"N-no, Daemon-san. I'm just saying..."

The senior suddenly grabs the prefect's collar and hauls him up close. "If the head prefect has something he wants to say to me, he can come speak to me in person," Daemon says flatly, all traces of amusement gone from his voice and manner. His eyes are cold, but the promise of violence is there.

_Interesting,_ Mukuro thinks, intrigued in spite of himself.

"Y-y-yes. I'll just go, th-then," the prefect stammers, trying to pry his shirt from the senior's grip. He's not having much luck.

"Tell him that," Daemon hisses, and shoves the boy away. He stumbles back, then runs off.

"Pathetic," Mukuro drawls, stepping out of the shadows. To Daemon's credit, he doesn't jump, but merely turns calmly.

"Most of the Discipline Committee is," Daemon responds.

"They must be, if they can be intimidated by one such as yourself~"

The senior tilts his head slightly. "I don't think we've met before, I'm-"

"I know who you are. I'm Mukuro Rokudo," the bluenet interrupts.

A slow, mocking smile spreads across Daemon's face. "Rokudo, hm? Related, I'm sure, to Chrome Rokudo. How exciting~" The senior stops speaking as he catches sight of Mukuro's eye. "...I suppose you've come to put me in my place, older brother?" His gaze seems to be drawn the unnatural seeming eye.

"Just so," Mukuro agrees.

"Nufufu-"

Mukuro cuts of the annoying laugh with a swift punch to Daemon's jaw, sending the senior reeling back. He supposes it isn't exactly fair to attack without warning like that. On the other hand, Mukuro has never had much respect for 'fairness' or 'decency' – not to mention this _bastard_ laid a hand on his _sister_.

Chrome asked him not to do anything permanent to Daemon. Although he'd like nothing more than to knock the senior's teeth out – and worse – he settles for dislocating both his shoulders and leaving him with a badly bruised face, Daemon's consciousness wavering.

"Go to hell, Daemon Spade," Mukuro says calmly, then punches the senior in the temple. He drops to the ground, unconscious.

"Brawling is not permitted on school grounds," comes a cold, indifferent voice.

Mukuro glances at the speaker, unimpressed. A glance at the armband on the boy's arm reveals him to be the head prefect.

"We're not brawling," Mukuro responds, smirking. "He's just taking a little nap."

The prefect stares at him, his gaze drawn briefly to the bluenet's mismatched eyes, but he doesn't react beyond that. "There's blood on your knuckles, herbivore."

"Paper cut," Mukuro lies outrageously, his smirk never faltering.

The black-haired male's eyes narrow. "You don't attend Namimori. Get off the grounds, before I bite you to death." He turns briefly to Daemon, landing a none-too-gentle kick into the fallen senior's ribs. No reaction.

The prefect turns back to Mukuro. "You're still here?" he asks coldly, collapsible tonfa appearing in his hands a moment later.

"Kufufu, I'm gone, I'm gone~ Lighten up," the bluenet drawls, backing towards the edge of the school grounds.

"I'll bite you to death, for assaulting a student," the prefect states, narrowing his eyes.

"Duly noted. Would you mind telling me your name, so I can know who's biting me to death?" Mukuro asks, smirking.

The black-haired boy stalks forward with surprising speed and slams a tonfa into the side of Mukuro's head. "Kyoya Hibari. That's all you need to know, herbivore."

Gaze flickering, the bluenet staggers back. "Mukuro Rokudo. It's a pleasure to meet you~" he responds with a forced teasing tone, trying to ignoring the ringing in his ears.

"... Related to Chrome Rokudo?" Hibari questions, lowering his tonfa slightly.

"Correct."

"... I'll overlook your infraction this one time," the prefect says shortly, spinning around. "But if I catch you fighting my prey again, I won't hold back. I'm no scavenger."

"Kufufu, such generosity~ I'm in your debt, Kyoya-kun."

Hibari halts, his grip tightening on his tonfa. "It's Hibari," he states flatly. "Now leave before I change my mind, herbivore."

Mukuro beats a hasty retreat. Passing through the gate of the school, he turns back to see Hibari standing beside Daemon's prone form. "By the way, it's Mukuro, Kyoya-kun~"

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><p>AN: A wild Hibari appeared! :O

So, any feedback about his characterization would be greatly appreciated. Same goes for general feedback as well ~ ;)


	3. The Art of a Name

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: Takes place several weeks (a month, maybe) after Illicit Extracurricular Activities.

Written for prompt 3 (shut up) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

_To mukuro x hibari 3:_ The idea that I had in mind was that Hibari wouldn't punish Muku because, like you said, he's Chrome's older brother and Daemon was quite a bastard to her. :)

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><p><strong>The Art of a Name<strong>

[ shut up. ]

Mukuro works two jobs; he's a waiter at a trendy cafe, and he works at a pet store. Chikusa works with him at the former job, and Ken at the latter.

Ken isn't working when Kyoya Hibari walks into the pet shop, though. Mukuro's working alone, because the owner (a creepy old man named Birds) had to leave early.

Hibari walks past Mukuro without even glancing at him, but he doesn't mind. The bruise Hibari left him with several weeks ago had finally faded, and Mukuro hadn't seen the prefect since. Not that he was looking for him, exactly, but the prefect was intriguing in a way that Mukuro had never encountered before.

"How much for this ... bird?" Hibari's calm voice cuts through the cacophony of the many animals and the humming of the fish tanks.

Mukuro walks over to the cage the prefect is staring at. It contains a single round, yellow ... bird. Honestly, Mukuro has never seen anything else like it before, but it's been in the pet store a very long time.

"4000 yen, plus taxes," Mukuro answers. Hibari's shoulders tense slightly, and he turns to look at the bluenet. So he hadn't even noticed it was Mukuro standing behind the counter? He smirks to himself.

"Herbivore," Hibari says, like it's some sort of greeting.

"Kyoya-kun."

The prefect's eyes narrow, but he doesn't rise to the bait. "How much for a cage, and food?"

"Eh. It's included in the price. This guy's been here a long time."

"... I'll take him," Hibari decides.

As Mukuro goes around collecting the necessary supplies, he asks, idly, "How is Daemon-san? Chrome-chan hasn't mentioned him, lately."

The prefect shrugs, watching Mukuro move around the shop with slight interest. "Expelled."

"Kufufu, how sad for him~"

"Namimori is better off without that weakling," Hibari states.

Mukuro chuckles again, carrying the cage and a bag of birdfeed to the front counter. "Is that all? Do you need a bag, Kyoya-kun?" He can't resist ribbing the prefect, trying to goad him into a reaction.

"Hibari. No bag."

A cheerful chirp interrupts them, and Mukuro is faintly astonished to see that the yellow bird has taken up residence on Hibari's shoulder.

"Hibari!" the bird repeats shrilly.

"It talks?" Mukuro says, blankly.

"... Apparently," Hibari says. The bird keeps up its chorus of _Hibari!_ as the prefect pays and Mukuro hands his purchases over.

"Does it have a name?" Hibari asks, transferring it delicately from his shoulder to the purchased cage.

"No. But you could call him Hibird." Mukuro smirks when Hibari glares at him.

"Hibird!" the yellow bird agrees, flying in a short circle around the cage before settling on a perch. "Hibird!"

"Shut up, herbivore," Hibari says coldly.

"Herbivore!" Hibird turns to glare at Mukuro as well. What a stupid, annoying bird.

"I think he likes the name~"

Hibari scoffs. "A high school dropout like you would think of a simple name like that."

In spite of himself, Mukuro stiffens. "You don't know the first thing about me. Little ignorant boys should keep their mouths shut about things beyond their comprehension," the bluenet snaps, angry at the comment and angry at himself for being the one to be goaded into anger first. But he has never taken insults about his dropping out of school lightly.

"A juvenile delinquent should know to be afraid of a prefect," Hibari responds, but something flashes in his dark eyes, like he realizes that he has overstepped a line. Or maybe he's pleased that he got such a reaction out of the bluenet.

Well, to be fair, Mukuro is the one who pushed him to it. The bluenet smiles coldly, resisting the urge to punch that unfeeling face until it shows something, even if it's only pain. "Have a nice day, Hibari-san," he says pointedly.

Hibari leaves the shop without another word, Hibird trilling _Hibari!_ again.

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><p>AN: Feedback of any sort is appreciated. This one's shorter, again. They do get longer... :D


	4. Afterschool Interrogations

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: Takes place a few days after The Art of a Name.

Written for prompt 10 (give me another chance) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

Yep, this is probably where Hibari becomes rather OOC. Sigh.

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><p><strong>Afterschool Interrogations<strong>

[ give me another chance. ]

"Rokudo," Hibari says, startling the girl in question and her two friends.

"H-Hibari-san," Chrome stammers, confused and a little bit nervous because... this _is_ Hibari-san, after all: The head prefect and all-around boss of Namimori High School.

"No crowding," the prefect says pointedly, looking at Haru and Kyoko.

"Uhhh, we'll see you later, Chrome-chan!" Haru says, and she and Kyoko quickly leave, though both cast worried looks over their shoulders.

"Is something the matter, Hibari-san?" Chrome asks nervously, trying to think of some rule that she might have broken. Nothing comes to mind, apart from Mukuro-nii almost putting Daemon-kun in a coma – but that was over a month ago. Well, whatever it is... Hopefully she won't get bitten to death...

"Come with me," Hibari replies, striding away briskly. The students making their way home give Hibari a wide berth – his dislike of 'crowding' is notorious, and there's no need to take unnecessary risks, especially when Hibari's involved.

Chrome has no choice but to follow him, clutching her books to her chest.

They end up in the Discipline Committee's office. Hibari immediately drapes himself over the comfy-looking chair behind the desk. Chrome stands awkwardly before him. None of the other prefects are around, which doesn't exactly make Chrome more comfortable.

"Sit down," Hibari says, with a hint of impatience. Chrome sits in one of the plastic chairs in front of the desk.

"Herbivore!"

Chrome flinches, her gaze darting around before settling on a wire bird cage, and the small yellow ball of feathers within.

"Herbivore!" the bird repeats shrilly, then starts singing Namimori's school anthem after Hibari glares at it for a few moments.

"You have a very nice bird, Hibari-san," she says timidly. The little guy is cute! Though he looks sort of familiar...

"Hn. You have a brother, Mukuro Rokudo," Hibari says, and it might have been a question except his tone is completely matter-of-fact.

"...Yes, Hibari-san." Maybe this does have to do with Mukuro-nii's beating of Daemon...

"Dropped out of Namimori two years ago," the prefect adds, this time sounding faintly disapproving as he rifles through a file. "His grades were adequate. Why did he drop out?"

Chrome bites her lip, glancing at the bird again. "Hibari-san, that's not really any of your, um, business," she murmurs. Mukuro-nii has made it very clear that he doesn't regret dropping out of school to support her, but she knows that the decision wasn't an easy one for him to make, and that he wished there had been some other alternative. She also knows that Mukuro-nii would hate for someone to hear about any of this.

"Herbivore. Answer the question."

Chrome turns to meet Hibari's gaze squarely. "Did you buy the bird from the Kokuyo Pet Shop, Hibari-san?" she asks, realizing where she had seen the yellow fluff ball before.

The prefect's eyes narrow. "... Yes."

Mukuro-nii didn't say much when he got back from dealing with Daemon - he still insisted that he'd just gone out with Chikusa and Ken, but Chrome knew the truth. He seemed distracted, though, which at the time Chrome had passed off as him still thinking about Daemon-kun. Now, she's wondering if he didn't meet up with Hibari-san.

And now that Chrome thinks of it, Mukuro-nii seemed really mad when he came home several days ago. She's pretty sure the round yellow bird every time she has gone to visit her brother at the pet shop for the past two years; maybe Hibari-san (or Mukuro-nii) said something while the prefect was there? It could explain Hibari-san sudden interest in her brother.

Or he could just be annoyed that he trespassed on school grounds, regardless of the fact that it was a month ago. Chrome isn't sure, but she decides to trust the prefect. Who would he tell, anyway? Reaching a decision, she says, "Ok... I'll tell you why Mukuro-nii dropped out if you promise not to tell anyone else, Hibari-san."

Hibari's eyes flash in obvious annoyance. "Carnivores do not make deals with herbivores. Know your place."

"My place is to protect my brother," Chrome answers, trying not to show how anxious the conversation (or to be more accurate, Hibari-san) is making her.

"I won't mention it to anyone," Hibari snaps.

The girl bows her head. "Thank you, Hibari-san. As for why my brother dropped out two years ago..." She pauses, to collect her thoughts. She doesn't like to think about the circumstances leading up to and surrounding that period of her life, but it seems unlikely that she'll be able to escape being bitten to death if she doesn't relate what happened.

"There was an accident, three years ago. I was thirteen... Anyway, my parents, for one reason or another, wanted to abandon me," Chrome begins, gazing down at her tightly clasped hands. "...Mukuro-nii disagreed. So they abandoned us both. Our parents left us with nothing. Mukuro-nii got a part-time job to try and support us, but it wasn't easy. There were a few times I thought- well, I wondered if someone from Family Services would come and take me away from Mukuro-nii. Nosy neighbours – I suppose they meant well, but still – they noticed how thin I was, and they knew that no adults lived with us. As soon as he could, Mukuro-nii dropped out of school to start working full-time. Things got better, after that. We moved out of the tiny apartment and- well, our apartment is still small but it's enough. More than enough." She looks up, defiantly meeting Hibari's gaze once more.

"... That's all. You can go," Hibari says curtly, looking down at the file again in obvious dismissal.

"Why do you want to know, Hibari-san?" Chrome asks, curious. It's usually not a good idea to question the head prefect, but this encounter is far from usual, and Hibari-san hasn't threatened to bite her to death yet, either...

"Get out," the prefect responds flatly.

"Herbivore!" the bird adds cheerfully.

"Have a nice day, Hibari-san," Chrome says, collecting her things. She doesn't know why that makes Hibari stiffen and glare at her, but she doesn't stick around to find out, either.

Mukuro-nii is waiting for her when she gets home, which is a bit of a surprise – she thought he had a late shift today.

"Welcome home," he says, his eyes crinkling up in the corners like they always do when he teases her. After all, it's usually Chrome who says so to her brother when he gets home.

"You're home early," Chrome answers, acknowledging the tease with a smile as she toes off her shoes.

Mukuro shrugs. "Miura and that other girl you hang out with-"

"Kyoko-chan."

"-...Kyoko-chan, yes. They stopped in at the cafe."

Ah. They must have told him about her strange meeting with Hibari-san.

"Oh..?" Chrome tilts her head and looks up at her older brother innocently. He can see right through her as easily as she sees through him, though. "I don't see how that leads to you being home early, Mukuro-nii."

The bluenet scowls. "I told M. M. I had to leave early today, so I could go pick you up from school."

"And she just let you go?" Chrome asks sceptically.

"... I had to promise to take her out on a date," Mukuro confesses, sounding almost like he's sulking.

"Poor nii-san," Chrome says unsympathetically.

"Enough about me, why were you talking with Hibari?" the bluenet demands impatiently.

"Hibari-san wanted to ask me about... nii-san," Chrome answers.

Predictably, her brother's eyes narrow. "What about me?"

Chrome bites her lip, but she always intended to tell him. She just isn't sure how he's going to react. "Hibari-san asked me why you dropped out, Mukuro-nii. And I told him."

Mukuro's scowl deepens; others would probably be very intimidated by the frown on his face, but not Chrome. She knows his anger isn't directed at her; and more than that, she knows nii-san would never hurt her. "Did he threaten you?"

Chrome shrugs. "No more than he threatens everyone else. You've met him."

"Presumptuous- Hn." Mukuro paces around for a few moments, then stalks back to the door. "I'm going out."

"... Ok, Mukuro-nii. Please don't stay out too long," Chrome replies, gazing at his back worriedly. She would warn him about Hibari-san, but she knows he can take care of himself...

"Don't stay up," the bluenet say shortly.

(Chrome stays up until Mukuro-nii returns at 3 in the morning, bloody but pleased.

The next day, the school is quietly abuzz about how someone got into an epic fight with Hibari-san, and actually beat him.)

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><p>AN: Feedback's greatly appreciated, as always.


	5. The Date

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: High school!AU. Takes place a week or so after Afterschool Interrogations. M. M. is in her early 20's. (The ages are all messed up, I know.)

Written for prompt 6 (tell me the truth) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

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><p><strong>The Date<strong>

[ tell me the truth. ]

"You know," M. M. says, pouting, "if you keep scowling like that I'll start thinking that you don't really want to be here, Mukuro~"

The bluenet stares at his 'date' with what can only be described as annoyance. "You practically blackmailed me into this. I'm already paying for everything – I'm not going to pretend like this is anything but an incredible inconvenience."

Already, his boss and 'date' had dragged him to numerous girly stores in the mall and insisted that he tell her if she looked good in at least fifty different outfits. Thankfully, she hadn't expected him to pay for her purchases – though he was expected to carry them.

M. M. sighs. "If you don't act like you're enjoying it, I'm going to buy the most expensive thing on the menu when we go to the restaurant," she tells him, mercilessly.

Mukuro's eyebrow twitches. "Well then it's convenient that my 'date' plans don't include dinner at a fancy restaurant," he hisses back. "We're going to McDonald's."

The girl's grip on his arm – light and flirty until now – turns vicelike. "Mc_Donald's_," she practically snarls. "I'll fire you."

"Please do," the bluenet says wistfully.

"Never!" M. M. denies loudly, causing the people around them to stare.

"Maybe we should just go to a movie then, _dear_," Mukuro grits out, fixing a false smile on his face as he hustles her away before a scene – well, more of a scene, anyway – develops.

"_Bad Teacher_!" M. M. says, when they arrive at the movie theatre, thankfully without any more public embarrassments. "Now that is a girl with her priorities straight. Get a man who can pay for all the nice things you need!"

"I think _Cars 2_ is more suitable for your level of maturity," Mukuro deadpans, then grunts as the self-proclaimed 'sweet and innocent' M. M. elbows him viciously in the ribs.

"Two for _Bad Teacher_," M. M. tells the cashier cheerfully while Mukuro is still recovering. He grudgingly forks over the cash, and then has to buy three bags of candy (for M. M.), a large bag of popcorn (for them to share – like that's about to happen), a small chocolate bar (for himself) and two drinks. It is only with the greatest effort that he weasels out of buying one drink for them both; because having to drink someone else's backwash, especially M. M.'s? So not appealing to him.

"Hurry Muku! It's about to start!" M. M. cries and drags him into the theatre.

Fortunately (because no doubt she'd complain about missing them throughout the whole movie) the previews for new movies start just as they walk in. Unfortunately, the theatre seems to be packed. The first few rows are completely full.

"Oh, the top rows are empty!" M. M. whispers loudly and Mukuro reluctantly follows her. If she tries to make out with him... Ugh.

"This area is reserved," a delinquent-looking male says, blocking their path.

"Shut up," Mukuro snaps, thoroughly annoyed at this point, and shoves past.

"No crowding," comes a familiar voice.

"Just close your eyes and pretend we're not close," Mukuro snarls lowly, glaring at the subtly smirking head prefect.

The other prefect grabs Mukuro's arm, causing him to drop the bag of popcorn. "Don't talk to Hibari-san like that-"

The bluenet turns and punches him in the jaw. He drops.

"Ooh, so strong~" M. M. practically squeals.

Hibari rises, his collapsible tonfa appearing in his hands. "I thought I told you not to attack Namimori students, scavenger."

"Scavenger?" Mukuro scoffs. "Are you saying that your subordinate was your 'prey'? You know what, don't even answer that. In case you haven't noticed, we're not on Namimori grounds, so you have no authority here, _prefect_."

The black-haired male stalks closer, idly spinning his signature weapons. "Do you want me to bite you to death?"

"Yeah, right. Unless you're forgetting that last time we fought, I beat you up," the bluenet sneers in response.

Hibari stiffens. "That was a draw," he says shortly.

"You would say that, wouldn't you. Now that the bruises have faded, anyway." Mukuro smirks.

The prefect's dark eyes narrow dangerously. "Scavenger-"

"You guys are so cute!" M. M. interrupts enthusiastically, causing them to draw up short and stare at her with similar looks of annoyance.

"No crowding – and no spectators either," Hibari says coldly, casting a glare at the people in the rows in front of them who turned to look at the commotion. The people quickly turn back around, several shades paler.

"You're Hibari, right? Ahh, you're so cute! You should stop by at my cafe sometime, I'll make you something nice~"

"... Cute," Mukuro mutters disbelievingly, wondering if his boss is legally blind.

"Herbivore, shut your mouth," Hibari adds, glaring.

"Is that like a pet name?" M. M. asks cheerfully, completely oblivious of her obvious danger.

The head prefect raises his tonfa, murder in his eyes.

"M. M., let's just go," Mukuro says with a sigh, gallantly stepping between Hibari and his boss. "This guy's stubborn. I'll bring you back some other time, all right."

"Whaaat? But you were just complaining-" M. M. starts to protest as the bluenet drags her back towards the exit.

"And I'll take you to that restaurant you're always going on about."

"You mean Ristorante Bianchi?"

The bluenet suppresses another sigh. "... Yes."

"You're the best, Mukuro~" M. M. cheers, latching onto his arm with surprising strength. "I guess if you want to leave that badly, I can't refuse! Let's go~" And then _she_ drags _him_ towards the exit.

"Running away. How pathetic," Hibari says scornfully from behind them, yet doesn't make any effort to follow them. The bluenet almost turns around but M. M. keeps her grip on his arm and continues propelling him forward.

"Do you want to go for food now?" Mukuro asks, once they leave the theatre.

M. M. cocks her head to the side. "Nah. You seem kind of cranky. It would just ruin the mood."

_What mood,_ Mukuro wants to demand, but he doesn't. "Should I walk you home, then?"

"Ok~"

They walk in silence. Thankfully, M. M. swanky apartment is only five blocks away from the mall.

After a while, M. M. asks, "So, you and Hibari..?"

The bluenet stares at her without emotion.

"No, seriously, is this why you don't like me, Mukuro? I mean, if you're gay you could have just told me!"

Mukuro's eyebrow twitches. "I _have_ told you that. Multiple times," he points out, struggling to keep his voice even. "But myself and that... prefect... are hardly together, so don't get any stupid ideas in your head."

"Don't lie to me. C'mon, Mukuro~ You can tell me the truth. I won't tell anyone."

"You would tell everyone on your twitter or whatever that website is," Mukuro responds.

"So you don't like him at all?"

"We almost started fighting. What do you think."

M. M. shrugs. "You seemed to be enjoying it," she says innocently.

"I enjoy hurting people," the bluenet retorts. "If you're referring to our past interaction, yes, I beat him up. And yes, I enjoyed it."

"I meant more than usual. In an almost homoerotic way, you know-"

"Homoerotic. I didn't know such an advanced word was even part of your vocabulary," Mukuro says insultingly.

"Oh, are you annoyed or something? Seriously, it almost looked like you guys were flirting back there."

"You need to get your eyesight checked."

"Denial," M. M. says with satisfaction, as if this explains everything and confirms her stupid theories.

"We're here. I had a great time. See you tomorrow at work," Mukuro says insincerely, dropping her bags on the front steps. He turns to walk away.

"What, no kiss?"

"I thought we'd established that I'm gay."

"Mukuro!" M. M. snaps, and actually stamps her foot. "I will never ask you to take me on a date again."

The bluenet sighs and rolls his eyes, then leans in.

And kisses her on the cheek.

"Good night, M. M.~"

"You're such a goddamn tease!" his boss fumes, shaking her fist quite comically. "Wait, get back here, idiot! Hey! I'm serious, Rokudo!"

Sighing again, Mukuro turns back around to face her. "What, M. M."

She shoves a bag of purchases into her hand. "These are for Chrome-chan. I know you can't afford the sort of glamorous things she deserves with your crappy pay checks~"

"Then maybe you should pay me more," the bluenet responds grudgingly, feeling as if he should give the clothes back – yet he knows there's truth in his obnoxious boss' words.

"Not a chance! Now, get out of here. I'm sure Chrome-chan is waiting for you~!"

"I'm gone. ... Thanks, M. M."

"Yeah, I'm the best. Don't forget it."

The bluenet doesn't bother dignifying such an absurd statement with an answer and starts to walk away again.

"Oh, and Mukuro? If I don't hear about a date with that cute prefect in a month, I'll start pestering you to date me again~ Since you and Hibari would make an even cuter couple than you and I would, I guess I can make an exception – but only this once~"

Mukuro grits his teeth. "Meddlesome woman," he mutters under his breath, not acknowledging her words. That will only encourage her, after all.

Hibari is lounging outside his apartment building when Mukuro arrives about half an hour later.

"Stalking me?" Mukuro asks rudely, his temper spent from the day with M. M.

"Student information is on file," Hibari replies, unfazed.

"Oh, so you're stalking my sister."

"No. Was that your girlfriend?"

"Why do you care?" Mukuro shoots back, finding himself thinking about what M. M. had said earlier.

"Leader-subordinate relationships usually end badly," the prefect says shortly.

"We're not... dating," the bluenet says with distaste. "And how would you know about that, anyway? Word of mouth? I can't imagine people daring to gossip in your presence. People seem to be absurdly scared of you."

Hibari's lips twist briefly. "None of your business."

"I think that's my line," Mukuro complains. "So was there a point to this conversation – or were you just passing through." The sarcasm in his voice makes it plain that Mukuro thinks this last part to be absurd.

"You dropped this." Hibari pulls a small bar of chocolate out of his pocket, and hands it to the bluenet. Their fingers brush and the prefect jerks his hand away quickly. "Don't be so careless, scavenger."

"... Thanks," Mukuro mutters, finding himself in the uncomfortable position of being forced to thank someone he doesn't particularly enjoy feeling indebted to, for the second time of the night.

"And there are... vacancies in the ranks of the Discipline Committee."

"Are you actually trying to recruit me, or are you trying to get a rematch."

"It pays better than that herbivore and her cafe job," Hibari says with confidence, ignoring Mukuro's words.

"No thanks. I don't have any interest in going back to school," Mukuro replies drily. "... But I appreciate the thought, I guess."

Hibari's brows furrow ever so slightly. He looks almost... frustrated. "Hn." He turns and walks away without another word.

The bluenet frowns at his retreating back, but just shakes his head and enters the apartment building. Chrome-chan probably is waiting for him, and it wouldn't do to keep her up too late.

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><p>AN: Feedback's greatly appreciated, as always. Updates will be about once a week (possibly longer) from now on... Sorry.


	6. The Accident

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: High school!AU. Takes place a week or so after The Date? My timeline's getting a bit hazy here, heh.

Written for prompt 2 (don't cry) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

to _too lazy to log in_: Yeah, I know that M. M. doesn't like Chrome in the manga, but since Chrome is Mukuro's sister in this fic, I think she'd be a bit more tolerant, since she wouldn't see Chrome as a rival for Mukuro's affection. ;)

to _nameless anon reviewer_: Thanks for the feedback! I've tried to cut back on how much Hibari says herbivore in this chapter and the next ones.

to everyone in general: This chapter's shorter, but the next one is longer, I promise. :D

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><p><strong>The Accident<br>**

[ don't cry. ]

Mukuro is just starting his shift at the pet shop when he receives a call from one Haru Miura. He stares at the display in surprise for a moment, blinking as he debates whether or not to answer. But he can't ever recall the girl calling him before – and surely she wouldn't do so without a very good reason.

"Hello-"

"Mukuro-san!" Miura's hysterical voice blares from the tiny speaker. "Mukuro-san, you have to come to the hospital!" It almost sounds like she's crying.

"What? Why?" Mukuro demands sharply. Miura starts babbling and the bluenet quickly interrupts, "Slow down. What happened, Miura-chan?"

"I-it's Chrome-chan! We were walking to school together like always and we saw a cat crossing the street – sh-she jumped in front of a car to protect the cat!" Miura explains tearfully.

That sounds like just the sort of selfless, idiotic thing his cute little sister would do. "Is she all right? Which hospital, Namimori General?"

"H-Haru doesn't know. She's in Namimori General – the ambulance took her five minutes ago but Haru-"

Mukuro doesn't bother listening to the rest of whatever the irritating girl is babbling and hangs up. Ken is watching him worriedly from behind the counter.

"I have to go," Mukuro says abruptly, untying the apron that makes up the shop's uniform and tossing it onto the counter.

"Is Chrome-chan ok?" Ken asks, looking worried.

"I don't know," the bluenet snaps tersely. "Tell Birds I'm at the hospital."

The blond nods silently, and Mukuro stalks out. Namimori General is about a ten minute walk from Birds' pet shop, but the bluenet runs there in about two. The staff are infuriatingly unhelpful, repeating that Chrome is still in surgery and that her injuries are 'serious' – though what serious entails is another story.

Mukuro waits with Miura and Sasagawa for two tense hours, during which time the former babbles incessantly. Sasagawa sits quietly, wringing her hands. The bluenet ignores them both, his gaze glued to the door to the operating room.

He's grateful when Sasagawa's older brother comes in and takes the two girls away – though the look of pity that the white-haired male sends his way only serves to piss Mukuro off.

Finally, about fifteen minutes after Miura and Sasagawa leave, the surgeon emerges. The bluenet jumps to his feet.

"Are you the next of kin?" the man asks.

"Yes. How is she?" Mukuro demands. "Can I see her?"

"She's stable, but her injuries were serious."

"What the hell does that _mean_?" the bluenet snarls, the frustration at his helpless in this situation boiling over.

"There was extensive damage to her right eye – she'll be blind in that eye for the rest of her life. As well, she suffered several broken ribs – however, nothing vital was damaged internally. Her right arm is also broken. More importantly, she suffered a serious concussion... At the moment, she is in a coma."

Mukuro stiffens, his mind going blank. "Will she be all right?"

The doctor sighs softly. "Her condition is stable, as I've said – but whether she will regain consciousness is uncertain. However... It's not quite as dismal as I'm making out to be. I'm confident she will wake up."

"When?" Mukuro asks, hating the note of desperation in his voice.

He receives a helpless shrug in reply. "I can't say. It could be today, it could be a month from now..." _It could be never,_ Mukuro finishes mentally.

"... Thank you," the bluenet mutters. "Can I see her now?"

The man leaves Mukuro with directions to Chrome's room and a feeling of slight relief. He'd feel better if he knew for sure that Chrome was going to be ok.

The hospital room is empty apart from his silent, motionless sister, though there is another bed. Mukuro sinks into the chair beside her bed. After a moment of hesitation, he reaches out and grasps her left hand. Her grip is slack, and it takes a greater effort than he would have expected to not hold her hand in a crushing grip. The steady beeping of her heart rate is almost soothing, and it reassures Mukuro that his sister is, for the most part, all right.

Time stretches on. He receives a text from Ken, which he tersely responds with an assurance that Chrome is ok, and that she is going to recover. He also sends a brief text to Miura in the same vein.

A nurse comes in to check on Chrome and offers to bring him something to eat, but the bluenet declines. He remains at his sister's side for the rest of the day, watching intently for any sign of change. Chrome remains comatose, however.

In spite of himself, Mukuro starts worrying about how he's going to pay her hospital bills, and any other expenses associated with the accident. He can't afford to skip any more days of work, and it's not like Birds or M. M. give him any sick days or something like that. M. M. would probably be understanding about this – not to mention she is very fond of Chrome – but Birds is, frankly, a creepy bastard. He wouldn't cut Mukuro any slack.

Around the middle of the day, a boy around Chrome's age is brought in and placed in the other bed. He looks like he took a serious beating, the bluenet notes distantly, then returns his attention to Chrome's inert form. No one comes to visit the boy, which suits Mukuro fine, as does the fact that the boy doesn't speak despite being groggily conscious.

Hibari stalks in about fifteen minutes after school ends. "Herbivore. What are you doing here," the prefect demands, glaring down at the boy in the second bed. Mukuro arches an eyebrow and watches the exchange with interest.

"I-I," the boy stammers, trembling.

"There's no room for weaklings in the Discipline Committee," Hibari states.

"B-but, I didn't even want to be in the Discipline Committee, Hibari-san!" the boy protests. "My tutor-"

Upon hearing the admission, Hibari's expression becomes even more foreboding while remaining largely stoic. It's mostly in the narrowing of his dark eyes, Mukuro muses. "I don't care about your excuses. If I ever catch you pretending to be a prefect again, I'll bite you to death."

"Y-yes, Hibari-san. It won't happen again. I'm sorry!"

"Quiet," Hibari orders, pulling out his tonfa. The boy squeaks in fear then goes limp as he passes out. The prefect then turns to walk out – and stops, his eyes widening briefly when he spots Mukuro sitting there. His gaze flicks to Chrome lying motionless on the bed. "... Rokudo," the prefect greets, not sounding quite so cold as he usually seems. It could just be Mukuro's imagination, though.

"Have I been promoted from herbivore," Mukuro drawls, more out of reflex than any real desire to annoy the prefect.

"Is that student going to be all right?"

"Your concern is touching, but unwanted," the bluenet snaps, annoyed. "Not to mention hypocritical."

Hibari, irritatingly, doesn't rise to the bait. It would have been a welcome distraction. "What happened?"

"Car accident," Mukuro says shortly, not sure why he's telling the prefect this.

Hibari nods, hovering almost uncertainly near the foot of Chrome's bed. "Don't cry," he says, seemingly out of the blue, because Mukuro's eyes are totally dry. What the hell? Is this Hibari's twisted idea of comfort, or something like that?

"...She's not dying, asshole," the bluenet snaps, bristling. "It's a coma, not- not- The doctor said she'll wake up." He hates how uncertain he sounds, falling back on what the surgeon said because he doesn't have any other assurances that Chrome _will_ be ok.

Hibari nods once, little more than a jerk of his head. "Of course."

Mukuro narrows his eyes, not sure if Hibari is serious or humouring him. After a moment, he looks back at Chrome's still form.

"I'm not going to cry," Mukuro snarls, gripping Chrome's hand more tightly, as if that can make her wake up sooner. "So stop staring, prefect." Absurdly, he can feel tears prickling at his eyes – as if this day could get any _worse_. He hasn't cried since... he can't even remember.

Hibari nods again, awkwardly. The bluenet sees the jerky motion out of the corner of his eye. "You need to call the office to inform them about this, so they can fix her attendance record," Hibari informs him.

Mukuro stares at him in disbelief. "Is that a joke?" he finally asks, tears forgotten.

The prefect shrugs. "I hate seeing weaklings cry."

"Fuck you," the bluenet says, flatly. "Get out."

"There's still room for new recruits in the Discipline Committee," Hibari reminds him, tossing the words over his shoulder as he walks to the door.

"Close the door behind you," Mukuro snaps, relaxing minutely when he hears the soft click of it closing. Chrome remains as motionless and unresponsive as ever.

* * *

><p>AN: Yep. The plot thickens. (Not really haha~) Will Chrome ever wake up? Will Mukuro ever join the Discipline Committee? Will Tsuna ever grow a backbone?

Find out next time!

Feedback's much appreciated, dear readers. ;)


	7. The Secret Admirer

**Disclaimer**: KHR! does not in any way belong to me, it's the property of Amano, etc.

**Author's Note**: High school!AU. Takes place SOMETIME after the last chapter.

Written for prompt 5 (never give up) of the lj community 10_orders. :)

PLEASE NOTE: I'm going away to Europe for the next two weeks. I may or may not have the opportunity to write there. I'm thinking not. So, this story will PROBABLY not be updated for a while. Just a head's up ~

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><p><strong>The Secret Admirer<strong>

[ never give up ]

Mukuro waits endlessly at Chrome's side, but it's really only a day or two before M. M. walks in and loudly takes the other seat.

"Mukuro, you have to come to work," she says without preamble.

"M. M., my sister's in a coma," he snaps back, exhausted and in a terrible mood.

"Well, I don't give sick leave, and do you really think you sitting here, not getting any sleep, is going to make your sister wake up any faster?" M. M. remarks bluntly.

The bluenet stiffens, glaring. "What, did Chikusa quit, or something?"

His boss pouts, so Mukuro assumes that this is the case. Not surprising, considering that Chikusa and M. M. did not get along at all. It's annoying though, because that means Mukuro and Lancia are the only servers.

Why M. M. doesn't just hire someone new, Mukuro doesn't know. Probably most people spend a minute in her company and know better than to get involved with a greedy, unscrupulous psycho like her.

Few people are that desperate for a job.

"Well maybe you should have treated him better," Mukuro says pointedly. "More benefits, and whatnot."

"I treat you the best of all of my employees!" M. M. screeches, immediately sensing the implications. She might act stupid sometimes, but she's far from it.

"You have a grand total of two, apart from the kitchen staff."

M. M. huffs. "I'll give you a raise. Come on, I'm so nice to you. I gave your sister clothes. I take you out on dates-"

"-I seem to remember that I was the one taking _you_ out on _a_ date, and you practically blackmailed-"

"-and I give you the good shifts, because I know you have to take care of cute Chrome-chan-"

"-couldn't take care of her now," Mukuro mutters without thinking, and M. M. immediately gives him this _look_ of pity and compassion. Assuming someone like her can actually feel things like that.

Mukuro hates it. "Fine," he says shortly. "I'll come in tomorrow, the usual shift. Is that acceptable?"

"Mukuro, I'll just hire someone else in the meantime-" M. M. starts to backtrack. Obviously this was some stupid attempt to cheer him up and now she realizes that she pushed in entirely the wrong direction.

"I said I'd be there. Don't feel the need to stay away from the cafe on my account," he snaps.

M. M. sighs. "If you were anyone else, I'd have fired you a year ago."

"Heaven forbid," Mukuro mutters under his breath. "See you later, M. M.," he says pointedly, and with a huff she leaves.

Miura arrives after school's over, and leaving Chrome in her admittedly flaky and unreliable care, Mukuro returns to his apartment after telling her at least fifty times to call him if anything changes.

He finds a vase of lotus blossoms on the kitchen table. They're fresh.

"What," he says blankly, to the empty apartment. After making sure the flowers have enough water, he takes a quick shower and falls into a deep sleep as soon as he collapses onto his bed.

The flowers are still there in the morning. Mukuro stares at them in silence as he eats breakfast, then hurries to his shift at M. M.'s cafe.

As expected, he's run off his feet now that it's only him and Lancia (though M. M. assures him she hired someone new – small mercies) and when he goes to visit Chrome later, he falls asleep in his chair. Miura wakes him up the next morning, and he barely makes it to his shift at the pet shop.

The bluenet is almost grateful for the distraction of work, tedious and irritating as he finds it to be. Miura hovers anxiously when she comes to visit with Sasagawa, and sends him home when he starts to nod off, much to his annoyance.

The lotuses have been replaced, he notices. It's definitely odd, since only himself, Chrome and the landlord have keys to the apartment, but as far as he can tell nothing besides the flowers has been disturbed, so he shrugs it off and goes to bed.

His days settle into a rhythm: work, visit Chrome, return to the apartment to fresh flowers and go to bed.

A week and a half after Chrome's accident (but who's counting, not Mukuro, nope) he finds a box of chocolates alongside the fresh lotus blossoms. He's starting to get a little suspicious, to be honest. In his rare moments of spare time he distracts himself with thoughts about his mysterious benefactor – it's better than thinking about Chrome's lack of improvement on the coma front.

No one besides Chrome knows that his favourite flowers are lotuses – and he doubts she would tell anyone a trivial detail like that. His sweet tooth for chocolate is more widely known, which doesn't narrow down the list of suspects (currently: none) at all.

Sighing, Mukuro dismisses the question from his mind – the chocolates are delicious, and anyone who gives him such a nice gift probably has good intentions – and eats the whole box before he goes to bed.

Chocolates – different flavours, types and sizes – begin to appear with the fresh lotus blossoms. Two weeks after Chrome's accident, Mukuro realizes he's come to look forward to seeing what his anonymous benefactor has left for him.

Which is just wrong. And creepy. And he needs to remember that someone is breaking into his house with gifts of things that most people don't know he likes.

"I need the day off tomorrow, M. M.," he tells her at the end of his shift, and she agrees.

"Why does that Pineapple-head get to take a day off whenever he wants," complains the new green-haired employee, an apathetic boy named Fran.

M. M. smacks him on the back of the head. "Because he's got more seniority," she snaps.

"So he gets better stuff because he's old?" Fran inquires disinterestedly, acting like he didn't even feel the hit.

"Old! You think he's old!" M. M. screeches. "He's only eighteen! I'm older than he is! Are you saying I'm old!"

Mukuro leaves at that point, not particularly interested in how that train wreck of a conversation is going to end (in flames, obviously).

Miura and Sasagawa are discussing the strange antics of one of their classmates – Tsuna Sawada – that day when Mukuro arrives. They usually talk about their day in school, what Chrome is missing, mundane details like that. Today the Sawada boy (who has been skipping the last period of class – math, for anyone who was wondering – with alarming regularity lately) is the topic of conversation, and Mukuro learns far more about the boy than he ever wanted to know. By the time he leaves for home, he is reasonably sure that Tsuna is; a: an idiot; b: the object of Miura's affection; and c: crushing on Sasagawa.

Mukuro scoffs under his breath as the elevator smoothly ascends to his floor. If he wanted to relive his high school days... Well, he'd reminisce with Ken and Chikusa. He doesn't care for 'girl problems' unless they affect Chrome-chan, in which case-

The bluenet stops himself from following that train of thought. Chrome will wake up when she's ready. She will. He knows she will.

There are fresh lotus blossoms awaiting him in the apartment, a smaller box of chocolates than usual, and a small jewellery box.

_If it's a ring,_ Mukuro decides, feeling thoroughly weirded out, _I call the police_. Because flowers and chocolates are ok, but a ring would just be creepy. The flowers and chocolates are already threatening his masculinity (even if he appreciates them) but a ring would suggest something like obsession and, just, no.

It's a pair of earrings, simple silver hoops that Mukuro is disturbed to note he would have chosen himself.

Then he tries them on.

Then he gets too creeped out and throws them away.

He takes a shower, and eats a small supper, and takes the box out of the trash can when he's done.

Mukuro places them on his bedside table, purposely not thinking about how pathetic and sad he is. He falls asleep staring at the innocent little box. (Pathetic, and sad.)

The next day, the bluenet visits Chrome early then returns home around lunchtime. He makes himself some soup, watches some tv, and dozes off on the couch.

The sound of a key in the lock rouses him, and Mukuro panics for a few seconds as he listens to someone fumbling around outside the door.

_What if his creepy/endearing stalker/benefactor is a girl? What if it's a disgusting old man, like Birds? OH GOD, WHAT IF IT'S BIRDS?_

The bluenet isn't at his sharpest just after waking.

He clutches the closest weapon at hand – the remote, damn it – and crouches behind the door like a lurker in his own home. Finally, after at least five minutes, the person manages to properly insert the key and opens the door.

It's the boy who briefly shared Chrome's room. The brunet looks stressed and is plainly sweating. He's clutching a fresh vase of lotus blossoms and a plastic shopping bag. Mukuro assumes it has the chocolate inside.

"... Who are you?" he asks, when the boy kicks the door shut.

"E-ehhhh!" the boy squeaks, dropping the vase in his surprise. Mukuro manages to grab it before it dumps out all over the floor, barely. "D-d-don't hurt me!" the boy cries, flinching away. "It wasn't my idea, I swear! I just-" He starts babbling, shaking like a leaf as Mukuro replaces the old flowers with the new.

"Shut up," Mukuro sighs finally, annoyed. The kid's cute, he has to admit, but he's probably Chrome's age. And how did he get a key to the Rokudo apartment? "Who are you?" he repeats, when the brunet finally subsides, staring fearfully at him.

"Ts-Tsuna Sawada," the boy says quietly.

The blunet stops. Then stares. Well, that explains why this boy has missed so much of math lately. He's been at Mukuro's, refreshing the flowers and bringing other gifts. "Is that a joke?" he asks blankly.

"Um, no," Tsuna mumbles, shuffling his feet. "A-anyway, I need to give you this." He shoves the bag into Mukuro's hand and tries to leave. "Well, bye-"

"Not so fast," the bluenet hisses, grabbing Tsuna's arm in an unbreakable grip. The brunet flinches away. "You said... this... wasn't your idea. Whose was it?" he demands.

Tsuna pales. "D-did I say that?" he asks, gulping.

Mukuro leans in, his eyes narrowed. "Whose. Idea?"

"H-H-Hibari-san," Tsuna stammers.

The bluenet stiffens. "You're lying," he snaps, shoving Tsuna away.

"I-I'm not, I swear," the boy protests, wincing. "Hibari-san was mad that I'd joined the Discipline Committee just because my tutor made me... So as a punishment he kicked me out of the Committee and made me take the flowers and stuff to your house."

"Why?" Mukuro asks sharply.

"I said my tutor made me join," Tsuna mumbles, looking at his feet.

The bluenet scowls. "You know what I mean. Why did Hibari put you up to this?"

"I-I don't know," Tsuna stammers. "You don't question someone like Hibari-san- you know how he is..."

Mukuro scoffs. "So you just let him bully you into doing this."

"Um. Yes?" Tsuna answers meekly.

The bluenet resists the urge to smack the brunet around, barely. Really, beating up someone as weak as the Sawada probably wouldn't do anything to improve his temper. "Well you must have some ideas about why he would make you do this- And don't say it's just a punishment for your joining the Discipline Committee for such a stupid reason," Mukuro adds when Tsuna opens his mouth to answer.

The younger boy shifts uncomfortably. "Well, everyone in my class knows Chrome-chan got in an accident... I mean, I spent a day in the same room as her-"

"I remember," Mukuro agrees, when Tsuna looks to him for confirmation.

"... Yeah. So, I thought at first that Hibari-san was worried about her. He's kind of weird about Namimori, but that doesn't usually extend to students... I still thought that that was maybe the reason. But why would he get me to bring flowers to her apartment? I could have just as easily brought them to her hospital room with Haru and Kyoko-chan," Tsuna continues.

"One thing- where did you get that key?" Mukuro interrupts.

The brunet blinks. "Hibari-san gave it to me. I don't know where he got it from, though."

Mukuro frowns. Tsuna's answer just raises more questions.

"Anyway... Another I thought was odd about me delivering the flowers and stuff is that Hibari-san always gave me the items personally, instead of having one of the other prefects do it," Tsuna adds. "And he asked me if, uh, 'the scavenger'-" here the brunet winces, as if he expects Mukuro to be angry about the title. Mukuro gestures impatiently for him to continue. "-if you, uh, liked the things he made me bring."

"So what did you say?"

"I told him you did. I mean, you added more water to the lotuses and I kept seeing the chocolate wrappers in the garbage... What was in the box yesterday, by the way?" Tsuna dares to ask with obvious curiosity.

Mukuro shrugs. "Earrings." He glances into the plastic bag that Tsuna gave him before – more chocolates. He isn't sure if he should be disappointed or not that his benefactor – no, that _prefect_, Hibari – has returned to just giving him flowers and chocolates.

Silence greets his answer, and the bluenet glances up to see Tsuna blushing.

"... What?" he asks, nonchalantly opening one of the chocolate bars and taking a bite.

"N-nothing..." Tsuna mumbles, quickly looking away.

"Don't make me threaten you," Mukuro says, smirking. Tsuna doesn't seem to realize that it's mostly a joke, though.

"I-it's just, that seems like a pretty i-intimate gift, that's all," the brunet blurts out.

"Yeah, but Hibari's strange like that. He's probably just trying to make me join the Discipline Committee," Mukuro replies dismissively.

"... Really?" Tsuna asks disbelievingly. "I mean, flowers, chocolate, jewellery, that's stuff a guy buys his g-" The brunet stutters to a halt, his eyes widening as he realizes what he was about to say.

Mukuro narrows his eyes at the younger boy. "His _what_, Tsuna-kun?"

"G-good friend. Possibly great friend... Um, so it was nice meeting you Mukuro-san, I'll see you later!" Tsuna says, his nervous smile clearly strained. The brunet turns to make his escape, and the bluenet decides to let him go.

From what Chrome has said in the past – _not _that Mukuro has questioned her on the subject, she's always the one to bring it up – Hibari was _always_ at Namimori. There were even rumours that the prefect lived there, but the bluenet dismisses those as stupid gossip.

What it does tell him was that Hibari preferred the school to his own home. Perhaps he has a bad home life?

That can also explain his strange behaviour concerning other people. Maybe, after hearing Mukuro and Chrome's story, the feeling of kinship over having horrible parents is what drives Hibari to give Mukuro all those inappropriate (but thoughtful) gifts.

Mukuro dismisses those thoughts. Hibari's motivations don't matter; it's not... endearing. It's not. Really. The bluenet tells himself he's not going to Namimori High to ask Hibari why he would go to such lengths. Because he doesn't care. He's just going to go demand how Hibari got a key to his apartment, and he's going to tell the prefect to stay the hell out of his life.

... Depending on Hibari's answers to the first question.

Classes let out about an hour ago; the students that remain on the Namimori grounds are either attending club meetings or sports practices. As a result, the hallways are empty and silent when Mukuro arrives at the school.

They haven't changed much at all since the bluenet attended, except for the fact that more lockers have been added. Chrome-chan said that there have been more students than ever attending the school. He stops at his old locker – 69, and didn't he, Ken and Chikusa laugh about that?

Idly, Mukuro wonders whether any of his old teachers are around – not that he has any interest in meeting them. Chrome doesn't talk about school, beyond her friends. She probably sensed that Mukuro doesn't want to know; she's sensitive like that.

The Discipline Committee's office is where he remembers, though it isn't the mess it was when Dino Cavallone was at its head. The few times the bluenet had cause to stop by, there were always papers piled high on every desk, dust bunnies gathering in the corners, and the few potted plants were all dead.

Now, there's only one desk, the room is spotless, and a small birdcage sits to the right and a bit behind the desk. Hibird starts trilling as soon as he spots Mukuro standing in the open doorway.

"Herbivore, I'll-" the head prefect starts to threaten, blinking sleepily at the intruder. He had been napping on the couch in the corner of the room before Mukuro came in. Hibari's dark eyes widen, then narrow as his gaze goes to the chocolate bar the bluenet is casually eating. "... Rokudo," he greets, seemingly unfazed by the fact that he was threatening Mukuro mere seconds ago.

"Hibari," Mukuro returns, taking another bite of the chocolate. He drapes himself over the comfy leather chair behind the desk – he assumes it's the head prefect's. "I hear that you're the one I have to thank for the... gifts." He was going to say 'flowers and chocolate' but that sounded all wrong to him.

Hibari frowns slightly when Mukuro sits in his chair, but otherwise doesn't react. "Who told you that?" the prefect demands, rising. At first the bluenet thinks he's going to reclaim his chair, but the black-haired male simply goes to Hibird's cage and takes the small bird out.

"A little bird~" Mukuro replies, smirking. "Want some?" He holds the half-eaten bar out to the prefect.

"No. I don't like sweet things," Hibari responds coolly. He seats himself comfortably on the couch again.

"Ah. That's a shame. So tell me... How did you get a key to my apartment?" Mukuro asks, deciding to cut to the chase since the prefect is being so unresponsive to his taunts.

"... From the hospital. I took it from your sister's belongings," Hibari answers, his tone seemingly careless. His gaze never leaves Mukuro, though.

The bluenet stiffens, outrage racing through him. Hibari essentially stole from his _comatose sister_- Yet he didn't seem to have malicious intentions, and if Mukuro was honest with himself, Chrome really didn't need her key at this point...

"Why would you do that?" Mukuro asks evenly, stifling his anger for the moment.

The prefect's gaze flicks away for a moment, darting to the still-open door. Hibird stares at Mukuro unblinkingly from his perch on his owner's shoulder.

"I don't have to tell you, herbivore," Hibari says coolly.

The bluenet tilts his head to the side, sensing the change in mood. For one thing, Hibari has returned to calling him 'herbivore'. "Or I could just beat the answer out of you, if you'd prefer," he replies politely. Actually, that doesn't sound like such a terrible idea. The anger that Mukuro has been feeling over his helplessness could use an outlet.

Hibari lifts his chin slightly, what looks like excitement flaring in his eyes. "Not here," the prefect answers, his tone as cool and calm as ever. He's not fooling Mukuro, though.

"Oh, no?" the bluenet drawls. "Then I guess you'll have to tell me why you gave me all those nice gifts."

"Are you threatening me, herbivore?" Hibari questions, leaning forward slightly.

"I'm just stating the truth," Mukuro replies, smirking. "If you're too much of a... _herbivore_ to fight me, then-"

Apparently that's too much of an insult for the prefect's pride to take. "I'll make you take those words back, herbivore," he snaps, rising fluidly to his feet. Mukuro does the same.

"Kufufu~ We'll see, won't we?" he purrs.

"I'll win," Hibari states, stalking forward. His collapsible tonfa have already appeared in his hands.

Mukuro shrugs. "Well, I know what's in it for me if I win~ But why do you want to beat me so badly? It can't be that I hurt your pride in our last fight?" he asks tauntingly. To be honest, he doesn't think he'll be able to beat Hibari again; the prefect isn't the most honourable of fighters, but Mukuro is downright _dirty_. He won by trickery – still a win, of course – but now Hibari knows what sort of things the bluenet is willing to resort to.

The prefect pauses, idly spinning one tonfa. "The satisfaction of seeing another weakling bleeding at my feet," he answers immediately.

"So the reason you gave me the... flowers and the chocolate was so you could get a rematch?" Mukuro asks, arching an eyebrow.

"Enough questions, herbivore," Hibari bites out, lunging at the bluenet.

Belatedly, Mukuro realizes that he should have allowed Hibari to change the venue of their battle from the Discipline Committee's office to the school grounds outside – for one thing, there would have been more room to manoeuvre, which would have largely negated Hibari's advantage of reach. And there might have been a spare bat from baseball practice lying around to arm himself with, or something.

It's a bit late to change things, though. In a pathetically short time, Mukuro finds himself flat on his back, the metallic tang of blood on his tongue and a radiating pain from his (now broken) arm.

Not his finest moment, to be sure.

"Pathetic," Hibari tells him, sounding annoyed (and a little disappointed? – no, it must be the ringing in his ears that makes Mukuro delude himself into thinking that what he hears) as he stands over the prone bluenet. Hibari's lip is split and bleeding, and he'll have one hell of a black eye tomorrow, but Mukuro is undisputedly the loser of this brawl.

"I am pathetic," Mukuro agrees dazedly, his traitorous, blood-slick tongue uttering the truth before the bluenet's mind can filter his thoughts.

The prefect scowls at him. "I would have expected more from the man who dared to attack a student on Namimori grounds," he remarks coldly.

"Kufufu, have I disappointed you?" Mukuro snickers, ignoring the way his soft laughter makes his bruised (cracked?) ribs ache.

Hibari kicks him, none-too-gently, in the side to shut him up. "Be quiet," he orders. "I can't abide watching weaklings fall apart."

Mukuro subsides, a smirk still curving his lips. "So why did you send me those _thoughtful gifts_, Hibari?" he questions doggedly.

"Are you deaf?" Hibari retorts, turning away. He begins pacing the blood-splattered floor, but Mukuro is too dizzy to track his movements for longer than a few moments. "I hate seeing weaklings fall apart."

"Really," the bluenet replies sceptically. "Because I've seen the 'weaklings' you've beaten up before. They're pretty close to falling apart."

Hibari stiffens and stops his pacing. "You were the first person who ever beat me," he says, his voice emotionless once more. "It was annoying to see you sitting like a... dead doll, staring at your sister." He turns to look at Mukuro fully. "I didn't want you to give up."

And then, because of course that's what would happen after this emotionlessly heartfelt confession, Mukuro's cell phone starts ringing.

_Well this could be potentially cliché_, Mukuro thinks nonsensically. When he makes no move to answer it (truth is, he can't) Hibari stalks over and pulls the phone out of his front pocket.

"What," the prefect says blandly, after answering.

Mukuro can faintly hear someone talking excitedly (probably Miura) from the tiny speaker.

"Slow down. Are you saying Chrome Dokuro just woke up?" Hibari demands with a scowl, holding the phone further from his ear.

Mukuro attempts to sit up upon hearing that, and he almost makes it too, forgetting about the recently-inflicted wounds. He collapses back to the floor though, as the pain catches up with him. "Is that a joke? It better not be a fucking joke," the bluenet snarls at Hibari, who seems to be ignoring him in favour of the person speaking on the phone.

"... Understood. Shut up, herbivore," he adds, his lips curling into a sneer. "Keep your mind out of the gutter. I'll bring him soon- _No_, that is not why he can't walk. If you keep talking, you'll be in detention for the rest of the year, assuming you survive being bitten to death."

The bluenet finds that he's curious in spite of himself. It's almost certainly Miura who is on the phone, given her propensity to annoy people with little to no effort on her part.

After listening to the other person for a few seconds, Hibari snaps the phone shut and slips it into his own pocket. "No," he says, answering Mukuro's previous question. "Haru Miura just confirmed that Chrome Dokuro emerged from her coma."

Mukuro grins.

And promptly passes out.

xx

When the bluenet comes to, he finds himself in the hospital bed adjacent to Chrome's. The first thing he sees is Chrome's anxious face, which immediately breaks into the familiar smile he hasn't seen in- more than two weeks.

"Chrome-"

"Mukuro-nii-"

The two siblings smile at each other, finding that words aren't necessary to communicate their feelings: relief, love and a bit of exasperation.

"I can't believe you challenged Hibari-san to another match," his sister scolds.

"I can't believe you jumped in front of a car for a _cat_," Mukuro retorts, but their grins spoil the effect anyway. "And technically, he challenged me." He glances around, noticing that it seems to be daytime again. "... How long was I out?"

Chrome shrugs. "Most of the night. It's about ten now."

"Hn." Mukuro frowns and begins to catalogue his injuries. His arm (not his dominant one, thankfully; it won't be too much of a pain) is in a cast, he can feels bandages around his upper body, and most of his face is throbbing. Idly, he wonders what he looks like. Probably a mass of cuts and bruises.

He's about to say more, but an argument erupts outside of their closed door at that moment. From the sounds of it, Miura is loudly scolding someone, with Tsunayoshi-kun timidly attempting to interject. He listens with half an ear, wondering who this mystery person could be as he looks around the room more closely.

"-_beating up_ an obviously grief-stricken older brother is _so wrong_, you should be _ashamed of yourself_-"

"Silence," comes the annoyed response... of Hibari.

Mukuro arches an eyebrow as his gaze falls upon a fresh vase of lotus blossoms and a box of chocolates. The earrings are placed in full view on top of the box.

Chrome smirks at him. "From your secret admirer," she explains slyly, reminding her brother that she isn't as innocent as she seems.

The bluenet rolls his eyes and snatches up the small card without deigning to reply. Inside is a simple note: _never give up_.

"Tch." Mukuro tosses the card in the trash can, but the stupid grin doesn't leave his face when Hibari finally shoves past Miura into the hospital room.

He'll blame it on the pain medication.

* * *

><p>AN: Yeah, I wanted to give Mukuro a collapsible trident for a weapon (to match Hibari's, ahahaha~ /is tonfa'd), BUT I COULDN'T THINK OF ANY PLAUSIBLE EXPLANATION FOR HIM HAVING IT. Sigh.

Also, I will now attempt to explain Hibari's OOC-ness away... I figure he would have mellowed out as he got older, and also without being a part of the mafia like in the series, he wouldn't have as much reason to be so violent? (Not that he _needs_ a reason, of course~)

ALSO THIS GOT SO CORNY BUT I LIKE IT OK. :IIII

So I guess Hibari and Mukuro are friends now. I don't even know anymore, guys. XD


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